Vasiliki “Kiki” Dimoula (née Radou; el, Κική Δημουλά; 6 June 1931 – 22 February 2020) was a Greek poet. She was the first female poet ever to be included in the prestigious French publisher
Gallimard’s poetry series.
Work
Dimoula's work is haunted by the existential dissolution of the post-war era. Her central themes are hopelessness, insecurity, absence and oblivion. Using diverse subjects (from a "Marlboro boy" to mobile phones) and twisting grammar in unconventional ways, she accentuated the power of the words through astonishment and surprise, but always managed to retain a sense of hope.
Her poetry has been translated into
English
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* English language
* English people
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Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ...
,
French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
,
German
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* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
,
Swedish
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Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically:
* Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland
** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...
,
Danish,
Spanish
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**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
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* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
,
Italian
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* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
and many other languages.
In 2014, the eleventh issue of
Tinpahar published 'Kiki Dimoula in Translation', which featured three English translations of her better known works.
Recognition
Dimoula was awarded the Greek State Prize twice (1971, 1988), as well as the
Kostas and Eleni Ouranis Prize (1994) and the ''Αριστείο Γραμμάτων'' of the Academy of Athens (2001). She was awarded the
European Prize for Literature
European Prize for Literature (Prix Européen de Littérature) is a European-wide literary award sponsored by the city of Strasbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label= Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin ...
for 2009. Since 2002, Dimoula was a member of the
Academy of Athens.
Life
Dimoula worked as a clerk for the
Bank of Greece
The Bank of Greece ( el, Τράπεζα της Ελλάδος , ΤτΕ) is the central bank of Greece. Its headquarters is located in Athens on Panepistimiou Street, but it also has several branches across the country. It was founded in 192 ...
. She was married to the poet
Athos Dimoulas (1921–1985), with whom she had two children.
Works
*''Ποιήματα'' (Poems), 1952
*''Έρεβος'' (Erebus), 1956
*''Ερήμην'' (In absentia), 1958
*''Επί τα ίχνη'' (On the trail), 1963
*''Το λίγο του κόσμου'' (The Little of the World),1971
*''Το Τελευταίο Σώμα μου'' (My last body), 1981
*''Χαίρε ποτέ'' (Farewell Never),1988
*''Η εφηβεία της Λήθης'' (Lethe's Adolescence), 1996
*''Eνός λεπτού μαζί'' (One Minute's Together), 1998
*''Ήχος απομακρύνσεων'' (Departure's Sound), 2001
*''Χλόη θερμοκηπίου'' (Glass-house lawn), 2005
*''Μεταφερθήκαμε παραπλεύρως'' (We moved next door), 2007
*''Συνάντηση'' (Meeting), 2007 (Anthology with seventy-three paintings by John Psychopedis)
*''Έρανος Σκεψεων'', 2009
*''Τα εύρετρα'', 2010
*''Δημόσιος Καιρός'', 2014
Notes
External links
Kiki Dimoula in TranslationHer page at the website of the Hellenic Authors' Society (Greek)an
EnglishSound files of her reading her poetry at the Center for Neo-Hellenic StudiesThe website of her publishersEuropean Prize for Literature
1931 births
2020 deaths
Greek women poets
Modern Greek poets
20th-century Greek poets
20th-century Greek women writers
Members of the Academy of Athens (modern)
21st-century Greek poets
21st-century Greek women writers
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